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Re: Be a Travel Agent - Real or Not?

I would always steer clear of any service that requires a subscription fee to join. You can easily join (for free) cj.com and market thousands of companys' products and get paid by driving traffic to them without an upfront investment of your own.

Christopher Spencer
Author of The eBay Entrepreneur (Kaplan Publishing, available September 2006)
Join me at eBay Live! 2006 in Las Vegas June 13-15 at the Mandalay Bay. I will be moderating a panel of Certified Providers on advanced business strategies, teaching a lab called Advanced Features of Selling Manager Pro and teaching a class on how to use Selling Manager Pro.

Re: Be a Travel Agent - Real or Not?

I am also in a Travel Industry MLM.

I also have IATAN and CLIA endorsed credentials. We get to take DreamTrips(vacations that are hundreds of dollars cheaper than you can buy online or through a travel agent) and have a sole proprietary travel search engine that nobody else has.

Re: Be a Travel Agent - Real or Not?

I also checked in with gti and the boss would never get back to me. i finally went and looked them up with the bbb and they looked legit, but after i spoke with an agent and found out how much the monthly cost would be, i said no. all your commissions would be going with them and they only start out at 1-3 per cent.

Re: Be a Travel Agent - Real or Not?

Hey Utopia

If you go to www.cruising.org and type in World Venture's zip code of 75063, based out of Irving, TX - they do not show up. Which means they are not CLIA affiliated and they certainly do not use a GDS booking system. It's in your company presentation - they use affiliate web sites such as Orbitz, Expeida, Travelocity, CheapTickets, etc...

Re: Be a Travel Agent - Real or Not?

I was just looking at a franchise forum, and with the advent of the internet, commissions don't equal the cost of putting up a new business. The best thing would probably be to join a bricks-and-mortar agency, one that's relatively high end and has a loyal clientele. Unfortunately, I feel like the travel agent business is going to fall by the wayside.

Re: Be a Travel Agent - Real or Not?

Originally Posted by gulliversman

Hey Utopia

If you go to www.cruising.org and type in World Venture's zip code of 75063, based out of Irving, TX - they do not show up. Which means they are not CLIA affiliated and they certainly do not use a GDS booking system. It's in your company presentation - they use affiliate web sites such as Orbitz, Expeida, Travelocity, CheapTickets, etc...

If I'm not mistaken, this company is a break-off from GTtrends.

Good luck.

It may be like the IATAN issue. It is not under Texas, but the travel office in California. Consider it like a manufacturing company. It may have an HQ in one place, but plants in another. That is how WV is ser up. HQ in Texas, Travel center in Cali. You might try looking for it from California.

WorldVentures is not a "break-off" of GTTrends. There were several high ups that left GTTto go start WorldVentures. Thats the tie-in. World Ventures is not GTT

Re: Be a Travel Agent - Real or Not?

Hey Utopia. How is it legal to issue IATAN cards to non travel agents? I don't want the run around.. I AM an agent, and I met someone who just joined World Venture-she says she will be receiving an IATAN card...she IS NOT a travel agent. She might be involved in the pyramid, and she might have people "booking" under her name...but she is not, again, IS NOT a travel agent!! Explain the legalities, if you will!

Re: Be a Travel Agent - Real or Not?

That's the whole enchilda. How can they issue and IATAN card to a non-travel agent? They can't.. most of these places don't take into account state and federal laws regarding travel agents.. what a shame.

Re: Be a Travel Agent - Real or Not?

Exactly!! I just don't understand!! The eligibility requirements for an IATAN Card are
the applicant must:
1. be a bona fide owner, employee or an independant contractor of an IATAN accredited agency; (ok-I can see how they get past this one-don't agree, but I see)
2. be registered with IATAN; (again-I'm sure they register their "agents" and I use the word "agents" VERY LOOSELY!)
3. devote a minimum of 20 hours per week to the business of SELLING travel; (am I misunderstanding this? I don't see anywhere that it says business of promoting their website and pyramid-it actually says SELLING TRAVEL-correct me if I am wrong, people)
4. earn a minimum of $5,000 in salary and/or commissions in the PRIOR 12 months; (EARN-when you EARN something-you obviously have done some WORK-calling friends and family and having them look at your website and then talking them into buying into your pyramid is NOT work...and you have to have had "EARNED" this money in the PREVIOUS 12 months-not this month, not next month, not in the next year--PRIOR 12 months)
5. be at least 18 years of age (yeah-well that cuts out alot of people!)

Being a travel agent is a JOB-a profession!! It is not something you get from paying another company to "validate" you!! A travel agent is a professional person who works long and hard hours (sometimes for free) to help others with the knowledge they have gained through research and experience!! A travel agent IS NOT just any Joe Shmoe off the street with a freaking website and access to a booking site. Therefore-none of these people should have access to an IATAN card, nor should they reap the benfits of "FAM" trips. "FAM" is short for FAMILIARIZATION-which is for professional travel agents-not someone just wanting a cheap trip!!

*steps down off of soap box and takes a bow*
Sorry guys-but I get a little bent about people being handed benefits that are suppose to be earned.

Re: Be a Travel Agent - Real or Not?

She might be involved in the pyramid, and she might have people "booking" under her name...but she is not, again, IS NOT a travel agent!! Explain the legalities, if you will!

Um txbabe72 I was just curious if I called you a liar and a cheat how you would feel about it? WV is not a pyramid and I resent the fact that you refer to it in such a manner. We sell travel through affiliate sites and we have end users that buy nothing but travel through our sites. We are also like "Costco" or "Sams Club" in the sense that we have a club membership that we buy in bulk and pass the tremendous savings on to our members. Do you call "Costco" or "SamsClub" a pyramid? I don't think so. You try booking a cruise that cost $33.50 PPDO (plus port, taxes and gratuities for a total of 149.99) to the Bahamas on Royal Caribbean. I donï¿½t think even you the mighty "IATAN" agent can pull that one off. Well we did through the buying power of our membership and many of them went at that price. BTW that was a 4day/3 night cruise.

Now let's get into the facts without the run around. I am sure you are aware that a fully accredited IATAN agent is required to complete a training course and to be working at least 20 hours per week. They also have the required $5000 in commissionable sales that they have to complete. It is only after these requirements are met that someone can become an fully IATAN accredited agent with their own IATAN number. Well I am pleased to announce that WV is in the process of offering these trainings and will track the sales requirement to complete this process. Yes people you can become a fully accredited agent with WorldVentures. :eek: Keep checking WorldVentures site for the launch.

Now I ask you if you are familiar with the Associate or Referral Travel Agent? They do not have their own IATAN number however they are a part of our company. They use their sites to refer people to and book travel. It is through this word of mouth or referral advertising that we have done millions of dollars of booking in the last 6 months. As a matter of fact we are the number 5 booker of one of the major cruise lines in the industry for our region. We have had so much interest and volume that major vendors are coming to us about working with us. Cruise Lines, car rentals and more are interested in working with us because they see where the industry is going. It is no longer the brick and mortar but the click to order way that people are booking travel. The internet has changed the industry. Either get with the times or the industry will leave you behind. So the Referral Agents we have do not have full IATAN credentials but they are still Referral Agents. They do not receive all the benefits as a full agent but the do have some of the benefits.

Hope that answers all your questions. I understand you are a "Travel Agent" and have put in time. Things change and you have to change with them. Don't get pissed off but figure out how you can work with them. BTW we are looking for Book Agents or full IATAN agents. Knowing your type I don't think we would be for you but who knows?

Originally Posted by gulliversman

Hey Utopia

If you go to www.cruising.org and type in World Venture's zip code of 75063, based out of Irving, TX - they do not show up. Which means they are not CLIA affiliated and they certainly do not use a GDS booking system. It's in your company presentation - they use affiliate web sites such as Orbitz, Expeida, Travelocity, CheapTickets, etc....

Hey gulliversman I was just curious how internet savvy you are? I just did the search on www.cruising.org and put in WorldVentures under Agency Name and nothing else. OMG what came up?? :rolleyes:

Re: Be a Travel Agent - Real or Not?

Originally Posted by Just_Curious

Um txbabe72 I was just curious if I called you a liar and a cheat how you would feel about it? WV is not a pyramid and I resent the fact that you refer to it in such a manner. We sell travel through affiliate sites and we have end users that buy nothing but travel through our sites. We are also like "Costco" or "Sams Club" in the sense that we have a club membership that we buy in bulk and pass the tremendous savings on to our members. Do you call "Costco" or "SamsClub" a pyramid? I don't think so. You try booking a cruise that cost $33.50 PPDO (plus port, taxes and gratuities for a total of 149.99) to the Bahamas on Royal Caribbean. I donï¿½t think even you the mighty "IATAN" agent can pull that one off. Well we did through the buying power of our membership and many of them went at that price. BTW that was a 4day/3 night cruise.

Now let's get into the facts without the run around. I am sure you are aware that a fully accredited IATAN agent is required to complete a training course and to be working at least 20 hours per week. They also have the required $5000 in commissionable sales that they have to complete. It is only after these requirements are met that someone can become an fully IATAN accredited agent with their own IATAN number. Well I am pleased to announce that WV is in the process of offering these trainings and will track the sales requirement to complete this process. Yes people you can become a fully accredited agent with WorldVentures. :eek: Keep checking WorldVentures site for the launch.

Now I ask you if you are familiar with the Associate or Referral Travel Agent? They do not have their own IATAN number however they are a part of our company. They use their sites to refer people to and book travel. It is through this word of mouth or referral advertising that we have done millions of dollars of booking in the last 6 months. As a matter of fact we are the number 5 booker of one of the major cruise lines in the industry for our region. We have had so much interest and volume that major vendors are coming to us about working with us. Cruise Lines, car rentals and more are interested in working with us because they see where the industry is going. It is no longer the brick and mortar but the click to order way that people are booking travel. The internet has changed the industry. Either get with the times or the industry will leave you behind. So the Referral Agents we have do not have full IATAN credentials but they are still Referral Agents. They do not receive all the benefits as a full agent but the do have some of the benefits.

Hope that answers all your questions. I understand you are a "Travel Agent" and have put in time. Things change and you have to change with them. Don't get pissed off but figure out how you can work with them. BTW we are looking for Book Agents or full IATAN agents. Knowing your type I don't think we would be for you but who knows?

Hey gulliversman I was just curious how internet savvy you are? I just did the search on www.cruising.org and put in WorldVentures under Agency Name and nothing else. OMG what came up?? :rolleyes:

Doh. Try a little harder next time before you cry wolf. :o
Damn thought we had em this time Joe.

Nuff said. L8 :cool:

WorldVentures is not in any way affiliated with Costco or Sams Club they are just used as an example.

Do I know you? I don't remember saying, "JUST CURIOUS IS A LIAR AND A CHEAT!" You are extremely defensive. Is there a reason for that? I do remember stating in multiple forums that it is WRONG to issue IATAN cards to people that have no experience in the industry. You said the people are issued RTA cards. I asked you to explain due to the fact that I have never heard of an RTA card. I just know that my "friend" says she is going to be getting an IATAN card-not an RTA card-an IATAN card. If this is actually the case-then I can honestly say WV IS lieing to IATAN and feel NO remorse. Again...IF THAT IS THE CASE, even though WV has no conscience in telling IATAN the person they are adding to their list IS an agent (which in most cases is a lie) by thinking just because they refer people to a travel site they are an agent-RTA or otherwise, I'm still wondering how they will prove the person EARNED a minimum of $5000 in salary and/or commissions in the PRIOR year. I'll tell you the same thing I told you previously-I have NO PROBLEM with WV doing business. If they become the top selling agency IN THE WORLD-more power to them! I'll give them props. This still doesn't change the fact that IT IS A PYRAMID. When one person refers others and makes money from those referrals and their referrals-it is a pyramid. Looks like a duck, sounds like a duck. And if I refer a person to Sams Club or Costco-I do not gain from their membership-so, think about it before you say it. Compare apples to apples.

Re: Be a Travel Agent - Real or Not?

Um txbabe72 I was just curious if you got anything I said before? They are not getting an IATAN number themselves. This is not a fully credentialed agent like you but they will refer people to their site, hence a RTA or Referring Travel Agent. They do not get the full benefits that you do but there are some that are passed on. They are employees of the company and do receive a RTA card based on the fact they are driving traffic to our sites. Yes there is a difference between a Fully Credentialed IATAN agent and a Referring Agent. The company is clear on that and is doing everything to make sure they surpass the industry requirements. They are going to be offering training and will track commissions for the agents. Once someone meets the requirements of IATAN they will then help the individual to apply for the Full IATAN Credentials that they will be entitled to. Understand that is only after they meet the requirements. The same requirements you had to meet.

Now as for being defensive I like to call it testy. I am sick and tired of people coming on here and saying WV is a pyramid, illegitimate and so on. Do you even know what a pyramid is? First off a pyramid is illegal so the fact that you are saying I am involved in something illegal offends me. You throw the term out there and I don't believe you understand what it means.

1) A pyramid has no end users or only people involved in the company. We have plenty of people booking travel on our websites to produce over 8 million dollars in travel so far. We are the number 5 regional booker for Carnival Cruises and I could go on.
2) A pyramid is where someone that gets involved after you can never make more money than you. This is not the case and I have seen it 1st hand. Some people make more and some make less. Although corporate America does sound like a pyramid where the execs make the most and it trickles down from there.
3) It is called direct marketing and many companies use it such as Mary Kay, Pampered Chef (a company Warren Buffett bought), Primerica Financial Services (a division of Citigroup), Cingular, Dishnetwork and Direct TV among others. I believe they all pay people, representatives or customers in various ways to refer other customers to them.
4) My Costco comment was based on our Dream Trips program buying in bulk with club membership. I was not talking about our marketing program so I guess I was comparing oranges to oranges instead of your apples.

You may have a beef and that is fine but when you state in 3 or 4 of your comments that this is a pyramid I am going to call you out on it and try to set you straight in other areas you may not understand.

Re: Be a Travel Agent - Real or Not?

Before we even get into whether or not it's legit, why would you want to be a travel agent. Do you really think the commissions are that high?

I hate to be negative but here's the problem with this:

1.anyone can book directly through airlines, Travelocity, Expedia, etc, for usually the lowest price available. They can use these sites to compare deals on airfare, hotels, you name it.

2.more and more hotels are coming online and can be booked directly.

3.terrorism, rising oil prices, the brink of a global recession(excluding Japan) and this is the last field I would want to build a business in.

More people get computers every year and are rapidly accepting e-commerce. This means many people are booking their own vacations online at an increasing rate.

My advice, take it or leave it, is that the opportunity to make money as a travel agent is far less than it was 20 years ago, or even 10 years ago. It's more lucrative for people to sell the idea of becoming a travel agent then to actually be a travel agent.

I have relatives that are travel agents and they barely make ends meat. In fact, I've never even booked a trip through them when I can go online and book a trip anywhere in the world in 5 minutes and know I'm getting the best deals.

SO before jumping in with both feet, ask yourself, what demand is there for having a travel agent when anyone can book a vacation online???